Inking pad assembly

ABSTRACT

An inking pad assembly suitable for use with a marking machine, the inking pad assembly having an ink pad partially positioned in a box or holder, the pad being located by a plurality of raised portions above the inside bottom of the box or holder, at least one of said portions dividing the box bottom into a plurality of ink reservoirs.

United States Patent Dudley 1 51 Mar. 7, 1972 [54] INKING PAD ASSEMBLY [72] Inventor: John S. Dudley, Douglas, Mass.

[73] Assignee: Dennison Manufacturing Company,

Framingham, Mass.

[22] Filed: Jan. 28, 1970 [21] Appl. No.: 6,340

Related US. Application Data [63] Continuation-impart of Ser. No. 839,925, July 8,

1969, abandoned.

[52] US. (I 118/264 [51] Int. Cl .B05c 11/10 [58] Field of Search ..118/264, 268, 270

[56] References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 1,569,470 1/1926 Falder ..118/264 Primary Examiner-Louis K. Rimrodt Attorney-Bronstein and Brown ABSTRACT An inking pad assembly suitable for use with a marking machine, the inking pad assembly having an ink pad partially positioned in a box or holder, the pad being located by a pinrality of raised portions above the inside bottom of the box or holder, at least one of said portions dividing the box bottom into a plurality of ink reservoirs.

6Claims, l9 Drawing Figures III" PATENTEBMAR' 7 I972 3,646,907

SHEET 1 BF 2- INVENTOR JOHN S. DUDLEY BY 24 20 I2 24 OCMJWZYW ATTORNEYS PATENTEDMAR H912 3,646,907

' SHEET 2 BF 2 r I I 400 47 FIG. l5 4? l8 L FIG, I? 4| 40o 4? 52 FIG. l6

INVENTOR JOHN S. DUDLEY ATTORNEYS INKING PAD ASSEMBLY This application is a continuation-in-part of copending US Pat. application, Ser. No. 839,925, filed July 8, 1969, now abandoned.

This invention relates to marking machines of the type which are employed for printing prices and other indicia on tags, tickets and labels. More particularly, this invention is directed to an inking pad assembly for use in such machines. The inking pad assembly according to this invention is particularly useful in marking machines such as shown in US Pat. Nos. 3,366,050; 3,379,128; 3,415,182; and 3,415,183. In the past, the conventional inking pad assembly for such machines has generally comprised a box having inserted therein an inking pad flush with the bottom of the box. In order to reink the pad, a stopper is used to apply ink to the top thereof. It has been found in practice, that with a pad reinked in this manner, it has only been possible to print 2,000 to 3,000 tickets per reinking. In addition, this method of reinking is quite messy and very often the print on the first few printed tickets of a run will be smudged because too much ink has remained on the surface of the pad.

In view of the foregoing, a new and improved inking pad assembly was required which would not only be less messy in use but would also permit the printing of significantly more tickets per reinking.

In particular, in its broadest aspect, the inking pad assembly of this invention comprises a box, open at the top, for at least partially retaining an inking pad therein, and means for supporting the inking pad above the inside bottom of the box so that ink may be placed in the space between the bottom of the box and the bottom of the pad. In one of the preferred embodiments according to this invention, the means for supporting the pad comprises a mesh layer having depressions in the mesh formed to position the mesh layer supporting the bottom of the pad above the inner bottom of the box. Unexpectedly, when tests were conducted with the inking pad assembly of this invention, it was found that between 30,000 to 50,000 tickets could be printed before additional ink need be added. In another of the preferred embodiments the pad is positioned above the box bottom by raised portions formed in the bottom thereof, at least one of said raised portions also preferably dividing the box bottom into a plurality of ink storage reservoirs.

Accordingly, it is an object of this invention to provide a new and improved inking pad assembly.

It is a further object of this invention to provide a new and improved inking pad assembly which permits significantly more tickets to be printed between reinkings.

Another object of the invention is to provide a new and improved inking pad assembly which is less messy to use than previously used inking pad assemblies.

Other objects and advantages of the invention will be ap parent to those skilled in the art from the following detailed description of the drawings in which:

FIG. I shows portions of a printing head including the pad holder arm and linkages for moving the same of a typical price marking machine incorporating the inking pad assembly of the present invention;

FIG. 2 is a top view of the box portion of the inking pad assembly according to the present invention;

FIG. 3 is a side view of the box;

FIG. 4 is a front view of the box;

FIG. 5 is a sectional view showing the preferred inking pad assembly according to the present invention;

FIG. 6 is a top view of the screen according to the invention;

FIG. 7 is a side view of the screen according to the inventron;

FIG. 8 is a top view of the inking pad according to the inventron;

FIG. 9 is a side view of the inking pad according to the invention;

FIG. 10 is a sectional view showing an alternate embodiment ofthe invention;

FIG. 11 is a sectional view showing a further alternate embodiment ofthe invention;

FIG. 12 is a top view of a plate suitable for use in place of the screen shown in FIG. 10;

FIG. 13 is a side view of another inking pad assembly according to the invention, preferably formed from plastic;

FIG. 14 is a top view of the assembly of FIG. 13 with the pad removed showing the raised portions in the bottom of the box;

FIG. 15 is a sectional view taken along line 15-15 of FIG. 14;

FIG. 16 is a sectional view taken along line 16-16 of FIG. 14 showing the spout of the invention;

FIG. 17 is another embodiment according to the invention wherein two separate pads and a divider is utilized to permit the use of two different inks;

FIG. 18 is a sectional view taken along line 1818 of FIG. 17;

FIG. 19 is a view of a two part inking pad according to the invention.

Reference should now be had to FIGS. 1-9 which show the preferred form of the inking pad assembly according to this invention.

In general, the inking pad assembly is shown at 10. It comprises an inking pad of absorbent material such as felt, felt covered with silk, a microporous rubber pad, or other materials commonly used for inking pads in the art. The inking pad is at least partially confined within a box 12 having no top, the box having four sides and a bottom.

The box is preferably of metal, such as steel, but may be a hard plastic or other suitable material well known in the art. The box is supported on an arm 13 and is movable therewith as a result of the timed movement of an arm 14 coupled to an arm 16 at point 15, the arm 14 being pivotally connected at 17 to a support. The arm 16 is utilized to move the inking pad assembly 10 into contact with a print head shown at 18 having type bands shown at 19 of the conventional type, so that the type of the bands may be inked between each ticket printing operation. The ticket is shown at 40 and is supported on a machine bed shown at 41. This particular configuration of support means for moving the inking pad assembly 10 into and out of contact with the type is well known in the art and is disclosed in the aforementioned patents referred to in the beginning of this application. In addition, the use of an inking pad in this manner is disclosed in commercially available automatic or hand-operated label printers sold by the Dennison Manufacturing Company, the assignee of this application, under the product names Small Label Imprinter, Power Pin and Printing/Attaching Machine and Rapid Set Model 4000 Imprinting and Attachment Machine."

As may be seen in FIG. 1, the box 12 is attached to the arm 13 which may be by any conventional fastener such as a nut and bolt, a rivet or by welding it thereto. The open box 12 is preferably shallow and is constructed so that it may retain ink within the confines of the box.

Reference should now be had more particularly to FIGS. 2-9 which show the components of the preferred embodiment of the invention. FIGS. 2-4 show the top, side and front view of the box 12. The box 12 is provided with formed detents and is formed with a spout or means for permitting ink to be inserted therein below the bottom of the pad. FIG. 5 shows a sectional view of the box and more particularly shows the features of the preferred inking pad assembly of this invention. In this figure, the pad 11 is shown slightly bowed because it has been forced into the confines of the box 12 and is shown positioned above and preferably supported by a screen such as a mesh screen 20 which has sidewalls 22 wedged between the detents 13. FIGS. 6 and 7 more particularly show the mesh screen configuration. As may be seen in FIGS. 5-7, dctents or dimplers 24 are formed within the screen so that they protrude below the main surface of the screen. In this manner, the screen is positioned slightly above the inner bottom of box 12. In practice satisfactory results have been achieved when the main screen surface is preferably positioned, about one-sixteenth of an inch above the inside bottom of the box, although the exact distance can vary depending upon the application. Thus an area of space is provided between the main surface of the screen and the inner bottom of the box so that ink can be dropped into the bottom of the box 12 and stored therein by way of the spout 14. Instead of the spout, the inking pad may be cut out to permit ink to be dropped into the box. The box ends may also be cut out or bent to form a spout.

The screen or mesh is preferably of a metallic material, such as stainless steel, or could comprise plastic or other conventional materials well known in the art. The screen is formed such that ink lying at the inner bottom of the box may flow into the bottom of the pad 11 and by capillary action rise to the top of the pad 1 1. It has been found in practice that the ink will be absorbed by the bottom of the pad even without any motion of the pad. Also, when the inking assembly is used with a mechanism such as shown in FIG. 1 such as is conventionally used in an automatic machine or even a hand-operated machine, the motion of the inking pad assembly between its two positions will cause ink to swish around and contact and enter the bottom of the pad. The screen is constructed of a porous-type material (i.e., full of holes extending therethrough) so that the ink may penetrate through it and is also preferably of a material strong enough to support the pad 11.

It is to be understood that the screen may also be used without the sidewalls 22 and can, in addition, also be constructed without the dimples 24, but with some support means (i.e., metal attachments) for supporting the screen above the bottom surface of the box 12.

In FIG. 8 there is shown the pad in a top view and in FIG. 9 there is shown the pad in a side view. As may be seen, the pad is ofa conventional type of inking pad.

Reference should now be had to FIG. 10 which shows a modified configuration of the preferred form of inking pad assembly. In this figure, instead of the screen being provided with a plurality of dimples 24, the mesh screen is flat and instead of the dimples, there are provided indentations or supports shown at positioned on the bottom of the box 12.

It should be understood that the members 25 could also be provided by indenting the bottom of the box to produce a plurality of raised portions to retain the screen above the bottom of the box 12 while still providing space to act as a reservoir for the ink.

Referring now to FIG. 11 there is shown a further modified form' of the invention wherein instead of supports at the bottom of the box being provided, as shown in FIG. 10, the sides of the box 12 are provided with supports 26 either attached to the side of the box or produced by forming detents in the sidewall of the box. In addition, if desired, a top most detent could be provided and in this way the screen could be precisely located within the confines of the supports 27 and 26 above the inner bottom of the box 12.

Reference should now be had to FIG. 12 which shows a modified form of a structure suitable for use in place of the screen. In this construction, there is shown a top view of a plate 30 having a plurality of holes 31 formed therein and extending therethrough.

It will thus be seen that there has been disclosed an inking pad assembly wherein there is provided means for storing ink under the pad in an airspace between the pad and the box or holder 12. The pad is preferably located above the bottom of the box by a screen having dimples therein or by some other support means disclosed in the alternate embodiments of this invention. The construction set forth herein allows the ink absorbed at the bottom of the pad to travel through the ink pad by capillary action.

In FIGS. 13-16, there is shown another embodiment of an inking pad assembly according to the invention. This embodiment comprises an outer shell or box 40 which is provided with a plurality of supports or raised portions 41, preferably formed at the same time the box is formed. This can be accomplished by molding the box from plastic or other suitable material wherein the molds therefore are constructed so as to form the raised portions 41. The raised portions 41 are in this embodiment attached to the inner bottom 42 of the box and rise therefrom. The portions 41 are spaced about the box bottom so as to provide sufficient and uniform support for a pad 43 which is inserted within the confines of the box 40 (see FIG. 13). There is also provided in this embodiment, a second raised portion or separator wall 44 which not only preferably acts as an additional pad support but also divides the bottom of the box into two ink storage compartments.

It has been discovered in practice, that when the inking pad assembly is used as shown in FIG. 1, (that is normally positioned at an angle), more consistent uptake of ink by the pad is achieved then when only one ink storage area is provided. The height of the portions 41 and 42 are preferably the same and are smaller in height than the sidewalls 40a of the box, so that the inking pad can be confined within the sidewalls. Within the box 40, there are also provided two additional raised portions 45 (preferably the same height as supports 41) which have threaded holes therein. The portions 45 are provided in order to connect the assembly to arm 13. The box 40 is provided with a plurality of detents 46 which are attached to the sidewalls 40a and project inwardly therefrom. The detents 46 are provided to retain the pad within the box 40. In order to fill the area of space (ink storage compartments) between the inner bottom of the box and the bottom of the pad 43, there is provided two spout means 47 formed in the sloping sidewall of the box. One spout means is provided for each ink storage compartment. With this invention, the spout means does not have to be covered or closed off during use of the inking pad and therefore it makes refilling of the storage means a simple matter. As may be seen in the FIG. 1, the opening of the spout extends beyond the dimensions of the ink pad and thus is easy to fill.

Reference should now be had to FIGS. 17 and 18 which shows a further embodiment according to the invention. The same numbers are used in these figures as well as in FIGS. 13-16 where applicable to represent the same parts. With the embodiment shown in these FIGS. 17 and 18, it is now possible to provide two different color inks (e.g., red and black) so as to be able to print in two colors on the same ticket. This is accomplished by providing a separator portion or wall 50 which is positioned to isolate the two ink storage compartments shown in FIGS. l316. The separator wall 50 may be molded at the time the box 40 is molded or alternatively may be formed separately and then glued in place as shown. Instead of using a single-inking pad as previously disclosed, two inking pads 51 and 52 are provided which are inserted between the outer walls of the box 40 and the separator wall 50, which is somewhat higher than the sidewalls of the box. The wall 50 also isolates the pads 51 and 52 from each other to prevent the flow of ink between both pads.

In FIG. 19, there is shown a multipart inking pad which comprises pads 55 and 56 which are affixed (e.g., by gluing) to a separator wall shown at 57.

The multipart inking pad shown in FIG. 19 can be placed in the box 40 shown in FIGS. 13-15 and be glued therein to provide the same structure as shown in FIGS. 17 and 18.

With the constructions set forth herein it is no longer neces+ sary to reink the top of the ink pad as is conventionally the practice today. With conventional inking devices, the reinking must be accomplished after 2,000 to 3,000 tickets are printed whereas with this particular invention, it has been found in practice that one reinking will print from 30,000 to 50,000 tickets before the ink supply must be replenished. With this new method of inking and reinking no longer is there smudging of tickets which has often been a diffieulty in the past.

It will thus be seen that the objects set forth above among those made apparent from the preceding description are efficiently attained and that certain changes may be made in the above constructions without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention. It is intended that all matter contained in the above description and shown in the accompanying drawings shall be interpreted as illustrative and not in a limiting sense. It should also be understood that the following claims are intended to cover all the generic and specific features of the invention herein described and all statements of the scope of the invention which as a matter of law which might be said to fall therebetween.

lclaim:

1. An inking pad assembly comprising a box open at the top and having four sidewalls and a bottom, a separator wall which extends between two of the sidewalls to form two ink storage compartments, said separator wall rising from the bottom and being of a height less than the height of the sidewalls, said separator wall further having a top surface for supporting the bottom of an inking pad and constructed to prevent the flow of ink in one storage compartment from flowing along the bottom of the box into the other ink storage compartment while permitting the flow of ink above the wall to wet the inking pad portion supported thereon, a plurality of inking pad supports positioned about each of the storage compartments extending upwardly from the bottom to a height less than the height of the sidewalls, a single inking pad positioned on the top surface of said separator wall, between the sidewalls and on the inking pad supports, one of said sidewalls having two truncated wedge shaped spouts formed therein, along the top surface portions thereof, one spout positioned to provide for the passage of ink to each of the compartments, each of the spouts being open at its top and being wider at the top than at the bottom and having an open side closest to the inking pad and a plurality of detents extending inwardly from the top portion of two of said sidewalls and distorting said inking pad in order to retain it within the confines of the sidewalls.

2. An inking pad assembly comprising a box open at the top and having a plurality of sidewalls and a bottom, a single-inking pad positioned between and in contact with the sidewalls of the box, a separator wall which extends upwardly from the bottom of the box for dividing the bottom of the box into at least two separate storage compartments for the storage of ink while at the same time providing support to the inking pad, said separator wall being of a height less than the height of the sidewalls from the bottom to permit the flow of ink above the separator wall into the pad portion supported thereon, a plurality of inking pad supporting members positioned in each compartment and extending upwardly from the bottom, said members being spaced apart so that ink may be stored therebetween, and a plurality of spouts open at the top formed in the sidewalls along the top surfaces thereof for providing ink to each of the storage compartments, each spout being in the shape of a truncated wedge wider at the top than at the bottom.

3. The assembly according to claim 2 in which each spout is open on the side closest to the inking pad.

4. The assembly according to claim 3 in which detents are provided which extend inwardly from the sidewalls and which are positioned along the sidewalls above the height of the separator wall and the inking pad supports, said detents being positioned to enter into the sides of the inking pad to retain it within the box.

5. An inking pad assembly comprising a box having a plurality of sidewalls and a bottom, a single-inking pad positioned between the sidewalls and above the bottom of the box, a separator wall of a height less than the height of the sidewalls on which the inking pad rests, said separator wall constructed to divide the bottom of the box into at least two separate storage compartments for the storage of ink and to support the inking pad while at the same time preventing the free flow of ink stored therein along the bottom of the box between storage compartments and permitting the flow of ink over the separator wall and into the pad portion supported thereby, a plurality of additional inking pad supporting members positioned about the bottom of each ink storage compartment and rising upwardly from the bottom of the box, and a plurality of spouts open at the top formed in at least one sidewall for permitting ink to be placed in each of the compartments.

6. An assembly according to claim 5 in which detents are to retain it within the sidewalls of the box. 

1. An inking pad assembly comprising a box open at the top and having four sidewalls and a bottom, a separator wall which extends between two of the sidewalls to form two ink storage compartments, said separator wall rising from the bottom and being of a height less than the height of the sidewalls, said separator wall further having a top surface for supporting the bottom of an inking pad and constructed to prevent the flow of ink in one storage compartment from flowing along the bottom of the box into the other ink storage compartment while permitting the flow of ink above the wall to wet the inking pad portion supported thereon, a plurality of inking pad supports positioned about each of the storage compartments extending upwardly from the bottom to a height less than the height of the sidewalls, a single inking pad positioned on the top surface of said separator wall, between the sidewalls and on the inking pad supports, one of said sidewalls having two truncated wedge shaped spouts formed therein, along the top surface portions thereof, one spout positioned to provide for the passage of ink to each of the compartments, each of the spouts being open at its top and being wider at the top than at the bottom and having an open side closest to the inking pad and a plurality of detents extending inwardly from the top portion of two of said sidewalls and distorting said inking pad in order to retain it within the confines of the sidewalls.
 2. An inking pad assembly comprising a box open at the top and having a plurality of sidewalls and a bottom, a single-inking pad positioned between and in contact with the sidewalls of the box, a separator wall which extends upwardly from the bottom of the box for dividing the bottom of the box into at least two separate storage compartments for the storage of ink while at the same time providing support to the inking pad, said separator wall being of a height less than the height of the sidewalls from the bottom to permit the flow of ink above the separator wall into the pad portion supported Thereon, a plurality of inking pad supporting members positioned in each compartment and extending upwardly from the bottom, said members being spaced apart so that ink may be stored therebetween, and a plurality of spouts open at the top formed in the sidewalls along the top surfaces thereof for providing ink to each of the storage compartments, each spout being in the shape of a truncated wedge wider at the top than at the bottom.
 3. The assembly according to claim 2 in which each spout is open on the side closest to the inking pad.
 4. The assembly according to claim 3 in which detents are provided which extend inwardly from the sidewalls and which are positioned along the sidewalls above the height of the separator wall and the inking pad supports, said detents being positioned to enter into the sides of the inking pad to retain it within the box.
 5. An inking pad assembly comprising a box having a plurality of sidewalls and a bottom, a single-inking pad positioned between the sidewalls and above the bottom of the box, a separator wall of a height less than the height of the sidewalls on which the inking pad rests, said separator wall constructed to divide the bottom of the box into at least two separate storage compartments for the storage of ink and to support the inking pad while at the same time preventing the free flow of ink stored therein along the bottom of the box between storage compartments and permitting the flow of ink over the separator wall and into the pad portion supported thereby, a plurality of additional inking pad supporting members positioned about the bottom of each ink storage compartment and rising upwardly from the bottom of the box, and a plurality of spouts open at the top formed in at least one sidewall for permitting ink to be placed in each of the compartments.
 6. An assembly according to claim 5 in which detents are provided which project inwardly from the top portion of the sidewalls and which penetrate into the sides of the inking pad to retain it within the sidewalls of the box. 